Posted By Jennifer Mo On December 14, 2010 @ 5:45 pm In Renewable Energy,Solar Power | No Comments

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Last year, Inhabitat covered the construction of the luxurious Bardessono Hotel[2] in Napa Valley with its cornucopia of environmentally friendly measures — from automated thermostats and LED lighting to salvaged local materials and solar and geothermal renewable energy. This year, Bardessono[3] was awarded LEED Platinum Certification, the highest standard of environmental design. Only three hotels in the world have achieved this certification.

On an interesting side note, Bardessono’s solar panels represent a real world compromise that even the most ambitious green building dreams are often subjected to. Approached by Bardessono, solar installer Premier Power[4] initially designed a solar system with tilted rooftop panels for maximum energy output. However, rising material costs soon made the design unfeasible. Rather than scrapping solar altogether, Premier Power and Bardessono found a building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) solution that qualified for a 30% investment tax credit and allowed Bardessono to move forward.